Customer disservice

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A loss of money, being sold a service that could never be provided, rising costs without agreement, delaying and deflection tactics. This is just a small selection of customer service horrors that I have faced this year so far. I am sure we have all experienced poor customer service at some time or another. Sadly, it appears to be on the rise.

As a systems thinking practitioner, it is not hard to see when it is due to poor internal policies and procedures, structures that hinder rather than enable, when staff have too little or too much autonomy, when the organisation is struggling in the changing environment and those unfortunate cases when the culture of ‘customer last’ rather than ‘customer first’ has become the mandate and behaviour from those at the top of the tree.

First on my list of observations are the delaying tactics used to make sure ‘just another payment’ is made or a deadline is missed or something is offered ‘just too late’. One company I am dealing with has a mantra of, ‘we can’t cancel it because it’s going through. You have to ring back in 24 hours’. When 24 hours arrives, you guessed it, there’s a fault/ complication, you need to ring back in another 24 hours and so the stories goes, rumbling on into infinity. It is nearly as annoying as the automated call triage systems that send you round in circles and the online chat bots which are utterly useless.

Second on my list is blaming the person at the front line of customer service. There appears to be an intense increase in post contact text messages, emails or phone calls to see, ‘how our customer service operator was today’. Seriously, please stop this. Any disgruntled customer is not going to give a good answer to this and the poor person who is probably working to a dictated script and within impossible constraints gets the blame for not being nice enough. When your policies and procedures hinder customers, rather than helping them, it is your fault. Yes you, manager, the one who put the policy or process in place. It’s you, not the operative.

In the viable system model, we talk about co-ordination failure, or system 2 failure. It causes havoc internally and for customers. Mixed up customer records, delayed actions, disconnect between departments. All of this contributes to the mayhem and culture in the organisation. It is this that we get fed up with. Not the poor operator who is the fall guy for your disastrous internal processes.

The purpose driving all of these actions is to serve the organisation. They want the profit and they want it now. They try to lock you into things you don’t want, which don’t serve you well. It is all driven by the purpose to serve the organisation and not the customer. As a result of this purpose, boundaries are set which do not have customer opinion or needs sitting within the sights of the decision mkaing. We are outside, a passive receiver of what is done to us, with little escape from the pain and a difficult pathway to any alternatives. It would only take a small exercise with critical systems heuristics to expose the realities, but organisations already know the realities and don’t really care, as long as they make their profit.

I would say that systems thinking is needed more than ever in these instances, but is it? These organisations aren’t like this because they are unaware of how to be different. They are like this because they purposely choose to be. When that purpose is at play from the very top, there is much less we can do about it.

As a customer I am speaking with my feet. I have left two companies this year. One I have been a customer of for 25 years, the other 35 years. Never again will I touch their products or services. These organisations are creating their own demise and for a systems thinking practitioner, it is very easy to see how and why.

As the strategies of organisations have changed, the strategies used by us, their customers, need to change also. Gone are the days of loyalty and an expectation of good customer service in return for that loyalty. Here are the days of being as hard-nosed about how we spend our money as they are about how they want to take it from us.  

The joy of creating

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Whilst I am in the midst of family bereavement at the moment, I have also managed to embrace an exciting and invigorating week that has reawakened in me the joy of creating. Creating insight expressed in writing. Creating new and different ways of looking at things, of putting them together and making them useful. Creating and producing something that is uniquely me.

If you have ever created anything yourself, you will know how it feels. The buzz, the insight, the pure joy of opening up a whole new world that previously went unseen. I talk in Creating the Conditions for Change© about the systems practitioner as the invisible catalyst. Invisible to the outside world, maybe, but visible, large as life, inside of you. In your heart and in your mind.

I have explored the head, the heart, consciousness and how we learn. I have undertaken exercises in reframing – particularly reframing the word ‘jealousy’ to ‘following and admiring’. If you ever thought someone was acting out of jealousy towards you, reframe it to them admiring and following you or wanting to be you and you see their actions very differently as you call your power back to you.

Reframing is a particular skill for a systems practitioner. It is part of our practice of boundary critique and it can shift situations significantly and open up new and unexpected avenues for development, change, improvement and/ or a new direction.

I have met with academics and talked about reflexivity, metaphor and storytelling. I have discussed bridging the gap between theory and practice.  

I have moved Creating the Conditions for Change© on again and we are starting to head in some unusual directions. I was asked what I like best about what I do. There are many things, of course, but I like the insight and stimulation from creating something different and new. Of putting new information together in different ways.

The creators will always be at the forefront. It does not feel comfortable sometimes, as I talk about in the book ‘Crossing the Bridge’. The journey of a systems practitioner can be a lonely one. We are mavericks, square pegs in round holes, ‘different’. We will, however, always have the joy of creating.

The Control Dilemma and the usefulness of system 3* monitoring

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Those of us who are familiar with the viable system model will know the control dilemma well. It lurks in many organisations, bearing down on others, particularly operational managers, like a heavy weight.

If you don’t know it, it is when operational managers are busy getting on with their jobs. They are on top of developments, efficient in their working ways, they are aware of and engage with their environment effectively and are generally doing very well.

Senior managers are more remote from the operational nuance. It is inevitable that they are. They are busy getting on with their own role, as they should be. What can happen, however, is that they feel out of touch or not included in the operational nuance and have the desire to get involved. There is an issue with this though, as the effectiveness of the operational managers can become undermined. It has the potential to hinder their autonomy and derail their well-considered efforts. In VSM language, system 5 bypasses system 4 and intervenes directly in the system 3 day to day managing of the operations. This results in a lack of requisite variety and limits the autonomy of system 3.

How common is it? Hoverstadt, in the book, ‘The Fractal Organisation’ claims that, ‘it is probably one of the three most commonly encountered archetypes, and is usually the one that people in organisations can recognize most easily’. I would add that they recognize it, but do not have the viable system model framework in mind to be able to articulate it as elegantly as we can when we are aware of and considering VSM archetypes.

A fear of losing control drives this archetype and operational managers become swamped with having to deal with the operations and also the demands of the senior managers, which may come in the form of requests for information, reports, increased performance and many other things.

But it doesn’t end there. The more the senior manager becomes convinced that things are out of control (usually because they do not know about the nuance) they interfere even more, requiring even greater reassurance. This swamps the operational manager and the situation spirals out of control.

Do we blame the senior managers? Unfortunately, we often do but the issue is not them or their personality. This is a systemic problem. It stems from the design of the system. Appropriate and effective monitoring systems (System 3* for those of you who know the VSM) can be useful here.

Effective monitoring, coupled with a bond of trust between senior and operational managers, can give the reassurance required and both managers can get on with their respective roles in greater harmony. The issue lies, however, in a situation where the system 3* monitoring function has been overlooked and may not even exist at all.

Hoverstadt, P (2008) The Fractal Organisation. Wiley. West Sussex

We can educate and train but can we employ systems thinkers?

/ Pauline Roberts / 2 Comments

Over the last couple of months I have had a series of discussions with several students about their future as they move forwards with their systems practice. They are keen and eager to step forward in the world as systems thinking practitioners. There is only one problem……where do they get employment or how do they set up as independent businesses?

True, there are more jobs coming through for systems thinking practitioners nowadays, but still nowhere near enough. The field is dominated by gangs and cliques who look after one another and in some respects, systems thinking has gone feral. Generally, those not working in the field cannot tell the difference between  those who look good and those who are good.

There is another issue at play, also. Organisations may say they want to employ systems thinkers but they give less thought about how they will accommodate them in an organisational context. By definition, systems thinkers think differently. They are excited by things others often cannot even see. They sometimes do not conform to the norm, preferring instead to be a bit of a maverick. They might hate routine and norms. If they are anything like me, they hate wasting time on trivialities. There has to be purpose and meaning in what they do. You cannot put them in a box, or you can be assured that they will fight their way out of it in record time.

I have experience of this myself. I don’t fit! Anywhere! I struggle with formal office environments where people tend to spend more time controlling each other (even though they think they don’t) and moulding everyone to a norm. Sometimes, it creeps in, bit by bit and before you know it you are one of the dull hidden gems, bored and despondent, looking for a way out.

This was one reason I went into consultancy and tutoring. For a different slant in my career. I soon, however, came up against the bitter competition in consultancy and witnessed more unethical practice than I ever want to see again.

So, what do we do? We educate and train people in systems thinking and then they don’t fit anywhere. To date, there are not enough employment avenues to accommodate them.

Then people ask how I managed to step into the world of systems thinking. When they hear how hard it was and what it really takes to stay afloat, some think twice about it. It was and is hard. Very hard. No-one sees the 18-20 hours days, 7 days a week, week after week, just to make ends meet. They don’t see the 4am starts and 5.30am trains when they read about your exploits online. They don’t see you leave the house at 4am and not return until midnight. They don’t see your fridge with empty shelves because you haven’t even had time to buy milk and the basic groceries for the last fortnight. I cannot express just how hard it can be and how dedicated you need to be to make it work.

How do we change this? How do we make room and employment for systems thinkers? Personally, I still think it is too soon. The outlets are not generally there. Yes, there are some outlets, but for the amount of practitioners we are educating and training, I hear of a far greater percentage who feel lost when it comes to their career, seemingly with nowhere to go that will accommodate the way we have educated them to think.

I do think the bigger systems thinking organisations who champion the discipline have a part to play here. How can they use their power to make a pathway for others to enter the field? What can they do to support those who want to fully step into it?

Some say that systems thinking is not a profession. It is a way of thinking that you use when doing other things. For example, you may be a health commissioner and you use systems thinking to enhance your commissioning practices.

Is it too early then? Is systems thinking still not in the place of it being a profession in its own right? There is an apprenticeship now but it is still very early days. In years to come it might be easier. People might have generally started to understand who and what systems thinkers are.

In the meantime, what do those of us in the field do? We are paving a way that will be easier for those who take the journey after us. At the moment though, the stories I hear in the field are of frustrated people who can see what they want but cannot quite put their hands on it.

What value can a systems thinking practitioner bring to your workplace?

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Provided that the systems thinking practitioner has been appropriately trained and/ or educated in the field and has a degree of experiential learning, the value they bring to your workplace can be significant.

That value can be threefold

  1. Value in helping you move towards your goal. They get stuff done.
  2. Value generated in the way the systems thinking practitioner works with you. Their perspective and ways of thinking can open up value you never expected and take you to places you never contemplated.
  3. Value for each individual and value generated in the relationships that are formed. Their thinking, the framings they use and the perspective they engage with generates value for them and for you. It also generates value in forming relationships as they reveal their authentic selves and encourage others to do the same.

Part of that value is in supporting you to achieve triple loop learning, ensuring that you consider efficacy, efficiency and effectiveness.

Single loop learning

Single loop learning is linked to efficacy and efficiency – this is where they help you to get things done. But, how do you know you are doing the right things?

Double loop learning

Double loop learning is linked to effectiveness. Systems thinking practitioners have a keen focus on effectiveness, so that you are not just achieving something, you have a greater chance of achieving the right thing. Systems thinking practitioners, however, go even further than this.

Triple loop learning

They help you to enter into triple loop learning. They are skilled in considering why you believe it to be the right thing. They question motivations, judgements and legitimacy and bring in a variety of perspectives to challenge mindsets, framings and decision making.

Despite popular belief, systems thinking practitioners are not all business consultants with fancy approaches and buzz words for you to jump on board with. Many are members of staff, working in organisations, often going largely unrecognised.

Systems thinking is a way of thinking about situations. It is the way of thinking that generates the value.

Reflecting on being an evaluator

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This year I have completed a three year evaluation of a community organising project. It was an interesting journey where I took a developmental evaluation approach with systems thinking.

Part of my considerations was to create effective conditions for the evaluation to be successful. My role was not as a first order, objective, dispassionate observer. I was an interconnected, embedded empathic member of the project team. I was the friendly challenger and critical friend. I was keen to demonstrate that I had as much care and passion for the project as the people living in the area in which the project was being carried out.

Being embedded within the evaluand

Being embedded with the evaluand was not an easy task. All of my interactions were online due to my geographical distance from the project. This meant I could not physically feel the atmosphere or walk around talking to people for myself. I was also unable to reach the wider community.

The challenges of the Covid 19 situation

Due to the constraints of the Covid 19 lockdown, I maintained contact with the evaluand via telephone, email and computer platforms such as Zoom. I attended meetings remotely and was accepted by the evaluand as a member of the team. Meetings attended on Zoom were particularly useful, as I was able to observe the dynamics in the room as well as hear the conversations.

Some of the remote ways of connecting with the evaluand were not successful. For example, I tried to run a focus group but only had one attendee. I also set up some creative and interactive exercises to draw out different perspective from the group on a Miro electronic whiteboard. I was not, however, able to get any input into this.

Working with the evaluand

During the evaluation, I was acutely aware of the pressures on the individuals involved in the project, especially around family commitments and work, so engaging without causing any additional stress was something I was particularly mindful of. What I found worked quite well were very short one-to-one phone calls or Zoom meetings. I found I could work these around the schedules of the evaluand and the interactions were not too taxing or imposing on their day. It also helped to maintain regular contact – little and often.

Providing reassurance to the evaluand

It was key to give reassurance about the positive elements of the project to the evaluand. They were doing some excellent work on forming relationships, working at multiple levels of recursion and building their own systemic sensibilities. I was able to reflect back scenes demonstrative of trust developing between members of the evaluand during meetings as stories and feelings were shared. I was also able to reflect back my observations of inner confidence growing as community leaders diligently led campaigns. There was also a role in offering a different perspective and/ or a different framing to the situation, bringing another dynamic into our collective consciousness for consideration.

Building trust with the evaluand

A condition for effective evaluation was trust. Trust between different members of the evaluand and trust between myself, as the evaluator, and the evaluand. I had one-to-one discussions with individual members which were confidential. I only disclosed that which they were happy for me to share.

Encouraging reflective conversations that enabled learning

The nature of the reflective conversations was that they were done with respect, rather than hard challenge.

Challenging my own evaluation practices – personal frames of reference and traditions of understanding

Personally, I bring several frames of reference into my evaluation that I need to be mindful of. They are that of a systems practitioner, a system changer and of my own experiences of creating the conditions for change and witnessing what I feel works and what does not. I also bring the frame of reference of a project and programme manager, a public service manager and an educator. All of these frames are involved in my perceptions of the project. I purposefully reflected on these and their potential impacts throughout the project, as I assisted the evaluand as they created value in the project.

Projection, perception and bias

With the above in mind, I was as careful as I could be of not projecting my feelings from other work I was involved in onto this project. I was consciously aware of my traditions of understanding and my frames of reference. I was trying hard not to be falsely positively biased. However, I acknowledge that I will have unconscious biases and areas of unknown that will impact on my evaluation practices.

Embodying STiP

It was imperative that as an evaluator, I worked with authenticity and integrity. I intended the evaluand to experience me as a person, not as a label as an evaluator. I put in significant effort to communicate in a way that worked for the people involved. I rarely, if ever, mentioned that I worked for a University. At times it was important to let the evaluand know that I was not employed by the commissioner of the evaluation but I was working on behalf of the project team, to help them as they enabled their project

Were the evaluand helping to shape the evaluation?

This was difficult due to the distance between us and there was the potential for more creative interaction. The evaluand were, however, shaping the evaluation because they are people and changeable and therefore, I flexed and blended with how they were moving and changing. They change, I change. I change, they change.

What was the impact of the evaluator being embedded in the project?

This is something only the evaluand can answer. Personally, I felt that the first couple of years of the project were more successful. In the final year, it felt like other pressures, such as the risk of losing funding before the project had achieved its goal, were at the forefront of people’s minds.

Did I enjoy the experience?

I enjoyed meeting and being involved with the evaluand. I liked their passion and their determination to move forwards. They achieved some great things. By the end of three years, it was definitely time for the evaluator to step back out and let them carry on with their excellent work.

The evaluation

You can find the evaluation on the community organising web page: http://www.citizensmk.org.uk/campaigns/fishermead-citizens-alliance/#:~:text=Born%20of%20the%20existing%20Citizens,Fishermead%20residents%2C%20not%20outside%20experts.

Video links for ‘Crossing the Bridge’

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Welcome to ‘Crossing the Bridge’ – a systems thinking practitioner’s learning journey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKRW37rGbUc

A human touch online https://youtu.be/PxHyVPKyH8I

Who are the systems thinkers in systems change work? https://youtu.be/Q96XeUipNX0

Love and social connection in systems change: https://youtu.be/RA_x33jvBOE

Hidden gems: https://youtu.be/HPkCgfCg2qo

Power struggles in systems change: https://youtu.be/TOlocZo6U7Y

Insights from a systems thinking approach: https://youtu.be/sXnsqu95PqY

On first introduction to the viable system model: https://youtu.be/K3oroJzDYwc

On first introduction to the viable system model – with subtitles https://youtu.be/BJmeaBy68No

Rabbits in the headlights https://youtu.be/YrCzzZhjYw4

Applying systems thinking to commissioning https://youtu.be/V3_SuOtZNGk

My systems thinking approach https://youtu.be/gwctoLVQcNo

Reflections on being an evaluator https://youtu.be/oVO7wPvjRZU

The Invisible practitioner https://youtu.be/DDcOFjnY6_o

The invisible practitioner – with subtitles https://youtu.be/u4iiMQyhzdE

The emotional journey of the systems thinking practitioner https://youtu.be/Lo5Z0laDS1E

What value can a systems thinking practitioner bring to the workplace? https://youtu.be/mhCQaftz32Q

Creating the Conditions for Change© – reciprocation https://youtu.be/6BMezA5e2mg

Crossing the Bridge

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Upcoming book: Crossing the Bridge

In my upcoming book, ‘Crossing the Bridge’ I talk about my learning journey into systems thinking and the development of my Creating the Conditions for Change© approach. I also talk about some common things that systems thinking practitioners come up against in the workplace.

It is not written in a technical or academic way, but in a way that I think will appeal to those who are interested in a practitioner’s journey. I cover what it has been like to venture into the world of work as a systems thinking practitioner – how systems thinking was received or wasn’t as the case might have been. I discuss the often talked about, but rarely written down, aspects of the journey.

It is a book of four distinct parts:

  1. The first part is about the formative years of my systems practice and how I started to embed systems thinking concepts and habits into my practice. It is written in the style of a memoir of my experiences.
  2. The second part is about my ever-evolving approach, Creating the Conditions for Change© and the wider approach of which it is a part.
  3. Part three is specifically about the practitioner’s journey. This is where I discuss some of the common things that systems thinking practitioners have to contend with. They are the things that people ask me about the most. The things people find difficult to deal with and the things that can put some people off practicing. Hopefully, by sharing stories about these things, it will encourage others to keep going with their own journey.
  4. The final part is about the things I am contemplating now that I am on the next stage of my systems thinking and practice journey. What appeals to me as I am moving forward into a new place in my learning?

The book aims to give insights into the real on the ground experiences of a systems thinking practitioner. It is also aimed at encouraging others not only to continue with their own journey, but to find ways to share it. Some of the greatest value that systems thinking practitioners can bring to a situation is often not talked about. Some of it is exposed in the book as I celebrate my learning journey and the wisdom of those I have engaged with along the way.

Crossing the Bridge – coming soon on Amazon. Exact launch date to be confirmed.

Where did Stafford Beer go?

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Yes, I know he is dead. But where did he go? Over the years from him practicing, where did ‘he’ go? Let me explain…

I am a qualified Systems Practitioner. I have a wealth of experiential and academic learning in the field of systems thinking. Something I use a lot is Stafford Beer’s Viable System Model. I know it technically. I use it in my work and have done for many years. I learnt it as part of my BSc and then my MSc. Never, during my formative years, did I pick up from those more experienced than me, the extent of deep spirituality and love which formed part of Stafford Beer himself. What I did pick up was an elitist atmosphere of those who ‘knew’ the model and those who were deemed ‘enthusiastic amateurs’ by others. They knew what the model was, but did not know how to use it. It was all about the model. Nothing but the model.

But, with every model comes a person. With every approach comes a person. There is one thing that I have learnt in my years as a Systems Practitioner is that people love to take an approach and erase the person behind it. However, it is the person and their values, their ethics, their thoughts, their deep feelings and ethos in life that makes an approach. Not a model drawn on a piece of paper.

A number of years ago I realised just how versatile the Viable System Model was when I used it for continuing development of myself, as part of an OU PDP course. I then turned my use of the Viable System Model into my systems thinking approach, Creating the Conditions for Change©. This approach is very ethically driven. It aims to bring humanity back into our working lives. It respects individuals and all of the values and gifts they bring with them to the party. It focusses on the people in the situation and it came directly from my learning from using the Viable System Model. One of the words that comes up most often when I engage with groups using the Creating the Conditions for Change© approach is the word ‘love’. Over and over again. This is to do with how I practice and encourage others to ‘be’ in a situation.

So, when sitting in a Metaphorum webinar this month hearing Vanilla Beer talk about the spiritual side of Stafford Beer, I believed that we had somewhat lost the man behind the approach as the years had gone by. Over the last year, I have had a couple of people approach me who know my work and have said that they knew Stafford Beer and they believed he would have liked where I was going with this work. I cannot say whether I agree with them or not as I never knew him myself. However, I do think we have lost the spiritual side of the Viable System Model somewhat and I believe my work is reinvigorating that side of things.

In the Metaphorum conference, Vanilla Beer said, ‘You cannot point to the VSM and say ‘love’.’ On the contrary, I think you absolutely can.

Updating my own personal system for 2023

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Those who follow my practice will know that I use Stafford Beer’s Viable System Model (VSM) in most of my work. I also use it to develop me as a system, using the VSM at the scale of the individual. I have been doing this since 2011, when I learnt how to use the VSM for my own professional development, as part of an Open University course.

Last year I recorded a video of how I use the Viable System Model on myself to show a group of students a different way of engaging with the VSM. I have updated the video for 2023, as my personal system changes iteratively, as most systems do. Here is the link to my 2023 update https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDvGMm6d02U